24th June 2026 Current Affairs MCQ

The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet extended Tushar Mehta's tenure by three years, alongside the reappointment of five Additional Solicitors General for the Supreme Court. It helps to lock in the hierarchy here: the Attorney General is India's top law officer, the Solicitor General sits just below as the second-highest, and the ASGs assist both in representing the government before courts. This chain comes up again and again in GK questions, so treat it like a mini org chart worth memorising once and for all. Reappointments like this are also a subtle signal of continuity in the government's legal strategy on major pending cases.

 CPCL became India's 28th Navratna Central Public Sector Enterprise (CPSE), a status that grants greater financial and operational autonomy — meaning the company can approve larger investments and joint ventures without needing case-by-case central government sign-off. Think of Navratna status as a company graduating from needing permission-slips for every big decision to being trusted to run its own show within set limits. India's CPSEs are ranked in tiers — Maharatna above Navratna, and Miniratna below — so it's worth keeping a running mental list of who holds what. This kind of PSU classification question is a recurring favourite in Economy-focused GK sections.

The Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe) issued the EOI to privatise PSLV (Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle) manufacturing — a concrete step under Space Policy 2023 toward reducing the government's monopoly on satellite launches. IN-SPACe functions as the single-window regulator for private space activity in India, distinct from ISRO, which focuses on research and launches, and NewSpace India Limited, which handles commercialisation. Handing over an entire launch vehicle programme to private players is a genuinely big deal — it's the difference between the government running the only factory in town and licensing others to build alongside it. This distinction between ISRO, IN-SPACe, and NSIL is a classic trap in Science & Technology MCQs.

Sagarmala 2.0 was launched to mark a decade of maritime reforms, pushing further on port-led growth, inland waterways, and green shipping under the broader Viksit Bharat 2047 vision. The standout fact here is the jump in National Waterways from 5 to 111, all recognised under the National Waterways Act, 2016 — a massive expansion of India's inland water transport network. Inland waterways are cheaper and greener than road transport for bulk cargo, which is exactly why this expansion matters for both economic and environmental policy. Numbers like "5 to 111" are exactly the kind of specific detail exam-setters love to isolate into a standalone question.

The proposed notification draws largely on the Kasturirangan Committee recommendations, which took a somewhat more development-friendly approach than the earlier Gadgil Committee report on Western Ghats conservation. It's worth remembering that both committees studied the same region but reached different conclusions on how much area should be strictly protected — a classic case of balancing ecological conservation against local livelihoods and development. The Western Ghats span six states and are one of the world's biodiversity hotspots, which is exactly why this topic resurfaces year after year in both Environment and Geography sections. Keeping Gadgil and Kasturirangan clearly separated in your notes will save you from a very common mix-up.

BSE Saatvik 100 is India's first ethical stock market index, tracking companies that meet defined ethical-investment criteria — a fresh addition to the country's growing ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) investing landscape. "Saatvik" itself draws from the Sanskrit concept of purity and balance, which fits neatly with the index's focus on values-based investing rather than pure growth metrics. This reflects a broader global shift where investors increasingly want their money to align with their principles, not just chase returns. Expect ESG and ethical-investing terminology to show up more often in Economy sections as this trend grows.

The GARUDA (Green Channel) Framework is designed to speed up and simplify the launch process for Alternative Investment Funds (AIFs), cutting down regulatory friction for fund managers who currently face lengthy approval timelines. AIFs are pooled investment vehicles — think private equity, hedge funds, and venture capital funds — that operate outside the traditional mutual fund structure and typically target sophisticated investors. A faster, "green channel" approval process signals SEBI's push to make India a more attractive destination for alternative investment capital. This kind of regulatory-simplification news is increasingly common in Economy current affairs, so keep an eye out for similarly-named "framework" launches.

President Droupadi Murmu conferred 65 Padma Awards at Rashtrapati Bhavan in this second phase, honouring achievers across sports, cinema, music, literature, and public service — including names like Rohit Sharma, R. Madhavan, Mammootty, and Alka Yagnik. Remember the three-tier structure: Padma Vibhushan is the highest, followed by Padma Bhushan, and then Padma Shri. Padma Awards being given in phases isn't unusual — it simply reflects the scale of India's civilian honours process, which recognises contributions across an enormous range of fields each year. Exact numbers like "65" are a small detail, but they're exactly the kind of thing a well-prepared aspirant should have at their fingertips.

Harmanpreet Kaur became the first cricketer of any gender to play 200 T20 Internationals, a landmark that reflects both her longevity and the growing volume of women's international cricket being played today. This isn't just a personal milestone — it's a marker of how far women's cricket's scheduling and visibility has come, since reaching 200 T20Is requires a packed international calendar that simply didn't exist a decade ago. Records like this tend to appear as standalone "who was first to" questions, which are quick, high-value marks if you've got the fact memorised. It's worth tracking Harmanpreet's other milestones too, since she's consistently at the centre of Indian women's cricket current affairs.

The new plan builds directly on the Global Methane Pledge, which is already backed by 159 countries, and pushes for more urgent, actionable cuts to methane emissions worldwide. The key fact to hold onto: methane is roughly 80 times more potent than CO₂ over a 20-year period, which is exactly why controlling it delivers faster climate benefits than CO₂ reduction alone — a bit like patching the biggest, fastest leak in a sinking boat before worrying about the smaller ones. This distinguishes the Methane Pledge from broader frameworks like the Paris Agreement, which covers all greenhouse gases without methane-specific urgency. Expect methane's potency figure to be tested directly, since it's the single most quoted statistic in this space.